Saturday, February 8, 2014

Wow, Sorry guys, I know it's been awhile, but it's been crazy! Hopefully I'll be able to settle down some and be able to write more. I hope you guys will forgive me. :)
Today I am going to discuss the movie Frozen. Unless you live under a rock, you probably know what I'm talking about. Chances are, you've seen it yourself or you know someone who has. Either way, you all probably know the basics of the storyline: Two sisters, the elder (Elsa) and the younger (Anna) happily live together until one day where Elsa accidentally hurts Anna with her power over ice and snow. Anna's memory is wiped, and it's decided by their parents (the King and Queen) to hide Elsa's gift from Anna so Elsa won't hurt her again. The King and Queen die and the gulf between the sisters grows larger, and on Elsa's coronation her powers are revealed and she runs to the mountains, setting off an eternal winter. In the end, everything is resolved (I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't seen it) and everyone is happy.
But how did a movie with such a simple plot become so popular so quickly? It's nominated for two Oscars: Best Original Song (for 'Let it Go') and Best Animated Feature. Critics are calling it the best Disney film since The Lion King, calling it a 'Disney Classic' before it's even out of theaters, and it's breaking box office records for animated films (last I checked, it was in a top ranking of highest movies ever seen, along with Avatar and Titanic). But what is it about this film that touches the hearts of so many?
Well, for me (and possibly you), it was the song 'Let it Go'. It's sung by Idina Menzel, of 'Wicked' fame (she's Elphaba in the original Broadway production). In it, Elsa, who has revealed her secret to everyone after so long, reveals that she feels like she's finally free. Though everyone knows, she can finally not be afraid of herself, and she no longer has to live in fear of who she is. She is free to finally be who she is.
I literally started crying in the theater during that song. I felt like Elsa had put a lot of my life into a song. As an Aspie, we are coached to to be 'the good girl (or guy)', trained to try to hold back who we are to be accepted. Elsa is truly coming into her own in this song, just like we all should be. We should follow Elsa's example and stop trying to hide all that we are: we have every right not to hide ourselves. We are amazing, we can do great things. We are clever, we are smart, and we just need to give ourselves a chance to find it.
In short, we, as Aspies, need to 'Let it Go'.